Dr. Natalie Spadafora
Dr. Natalie Spadafora is a post-doctoral fellow studying civility in the lab. Natalie completed her MA and PhD with Dr.’s Zopito Marini and Tony Volk in CHYS at Brock before going to McMaster to work as a post-doc at the Offord Center.
Elizabeth Al-Jbouri
Elizabeth Al-Jbouri is finishing her PhD in CHYS with Tony Volk, with whom she also did her MA in CHYS. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Ottawa. She is also actively engaged with Naomi Andrews research. Elizabeth’s research focuses on girls’ intrasexual friendships and aggression.
Erin Knobl
Erin Knobl is a first-year PhD student in CHYS, working with Naomi Andrews. She completed an MSc in Rehabilitation Science and an MSc in Occupational Therapy, both from McMaster University and an undergraduate degree in CHYS from Brock. Her research focuses on children’s mental health within school systems.
Oya Pakkal
Oya Pakkal is a PhD student in PSYC. She completed her MA in PSYC and undergraduate degree at McMaster University. Oya’s research focuses on the social hierarchy, emotions, and social behaviors. She has been working with Naomi Andrews on a project relating to teasing and other social interactions.
Kirsten MacAulay
Kirsten MacAulay is a second-year MA student in CHYS, working with Naomi Andrews. Kirsten completed her undergraduate degree at Brock University in CHYS. She is interested in parenting, adverse childhood experiences, and children’s mental health.
Ashley Anderson
Ashley Anderson is a second-year MA student in Psychology, working with Tony Volk. She is interested in studying the relationship between psychopathy and relationship conflict in adolescents.
Julie Mills
Julie Mills is a finishing up her Master’s Thesis in the CHYS program, working with Tony Volk. Julie completed her undergraduate degree at Trent University, majoring in both CHYS and PSYC. She is interested in studying bullying among children.
Alex Puchalski
Alex Puchalski is in her second year of her MA in Psychology, working with Tony Volk. She completed her BA in Psychology at Brock University in 2021, and is interested in studying the Dark Triad, prejudice, personality, and politics.
Sydney Running
Sydney Running is a second-year MA student in Child and Youth Studies, working with Tony Volk. She is interested in studying adolescent dating relationships and what makes adolescents appealing as dating partners.
Kyle Edwards
Kyle Edwards is a second-year MA student in Psychology working with Drew Dane. Kyle is studying the use of cooperative and exploitative prosocial strategies (real nice and fake nice) in conjunction with adolescent bullying.
Sam McMahon
Sam McMahon is a first-year MA student in the Social-Personality stream of Psychology under the supervision of Tony Volk. She graduated with her BA in Psychology at Brock University in 2022, completing her honours thesis research under Angela Book. Sam is interested in studying psychopathy and personality.
What opportunities are there for students in the BRAVE group? Between the four of us, we offer students a wide range of thesis topics. Student can also expect to work on group projects that cut across labs. While we operate as individual supervisors, we frequently collaborate on grants, projects, and papers. So in essence, if you work with one of us, you will have the opportunity to work with all of us!
What are we looking for? We are looking for individuals who are curious and motivated to study aggression and victimization experiences. We work with undergraduate and graduate volunteers and research assistants, as well as undergraduate thesis students, MA students, PHD students, and post-doctoral fellows. We can supervise students in both CHYS and PSYC, so we can accommodate a broad range of interests.
Where can you get more information? More information on the CHYS and PSYC grad programs can be found in those links. But perhaps the best source of information is to contact us. Both faculty and students are always interested in talking to potential recruits for the group. We emphasize the importance of having a good fit with the team so we think it’s as important for us to know you as it is for you to know us. The same thing applies with our students, many (if not all) of whom you will end up working with in some capacity, so they are always happy to talk to prospective group members.